Unemployed or Unemployable ??

[Butts]

With all the moral hand wringing about the current horrendous levels of Unemployment I would like to pose a question....

Rather than all the doom and gloom case studies in the media about the 8-10% without work , would not be an idea to try and find out why the other 90% actually have a job.

Is it just unfortunate timing for the 10% or are there underlying reasons for the difference.

Let's find out how the vast majority of youngsters managed to find a job and see what if anything they did different those without employment.

Results could be a revelation

 

[richw]

When I was 16 I handed in a cv to every business in town, I selected out of the responses which I thought would be best development for me, I chose a worldwide fast food company. Not such a bad choice as one would think as they put a lot of resources into staff training and development. I was a shift manager aged 19. Having such experience so young got me into my current position at another company. Most of my success has been down to personal motivation to better myself and my belongings. Up until my promotion age 19 I was on minimum wage, yet managed to save to get everything I wanted. My first wish was a brand new car, which i had saved enough by 18. I am very motivated to get the best from any situation,

Sent from my HTC Sensation Z710e using Tapatalk

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

When I was 16 I handed in a cv to every business in town, I selected out of the responses which I thought would be best development for me, I chose a worldwide fast food company. Not such a bad choice as one would think as they put a lot of resources into staff training and development. I was a shift manager aged 19. Having such experience so young got me into my current position at another company. Most of my success has been down to personal motivation to better myself and my belongings. Up until my promotion age 19 I was on minimum wage, yet managed to save to get everything I wanted. My first wish was a brand new car, which i had saved enough by 18. I am very motivated to get the best from any situation,

It is when I read items such as yours above, it gives me hope, as one now retired, that there are still young people with the self-belief and motivation to make a success of their lives. Well done, for your perseverance.

 

[Nym]

Personally, I do think the problem is a lack of motivation and maturity among the 16 - 25 year olds of today.

I'm at university with mostly this age group and the're all a lot more childish now than they were the first time I went to university a few years back. And there is a lack of professionalism in youngsters nowadays.

Was going round needing a weekend job to pay some debt off, went to an interview at a Merlin Entertainments UK establishment that shal remain nameless, and there were people turning up to interview without even a shirt on, let alone a shirt and tie. Talk about feeling overdressed in a suit! (Was also the 2nd oldest one applying for the job)

I've also worked in a number of temp jobs, mainly because I have always pushed my employment agencies between jobs, or gone out and hoofed it between employers asking for work. A lot of the time they come back with the 'overqualified' thing, but here's an interesting factoid, I've never been unemployed for more that 2 weeks 3 days...
God help me when I finish my exams I need to find a job sharpish, I might see if I can get back into Merlin UK or onto a multidrop job again, but them markets for jobs are looking tighter, and no-one wants staff (short of seasonal establishments with crap wages) for a few months till September when I will be starting with QinetiQ, Network Rail or someone else of that caliber.

So anyway, yes, I think it's all due to a lack of effort, and lazyness on the side of employers nowadays too, even the cheap employers are now using psychometric testing (and the're using the cheap ones) and using this to decide candidates. Or seeing someone thats about to have a lot of letters after his name and not wanting to employ them. I don't care that it's min wage, I just want a freekin job!

 

[Geezertronic]

I've always been a believer that I have made my own luck as far as my job prospects have been concerned. Unfortunately some people share the same opinion as Harry and Lloyd (from Dumb and Dumber):

Harry: I can't believe we drove around all day, and there's not a single job in this town. There is nothing! Nada! Zip!
Lloyd: Yeah! Unless you wanna work 40 hours a week

 

[anthony263]

I have been looking for a job s now since June when I left university.

I have a degree and everything yet I am still struggling. It does take some effect keeping myself motivated.

The only job I have had is working as a bus driver for Veolia Transport cymru.

I have been applying for jobs all over the uk online and handing in cv's and application forms at various shops and other businesses around the south wales area.

I always make sure I have copies of my CV with me if I am ever out on a trip so I can hand them in if I see any vacancies.

Frankly I dont care about the hours I work and I am happy to work for minimum wage just so long as I can get a job.


As for those who have mentioned about being overqualified I have had this experience before when I applied to work in the local villiage shop.

 

[richw]

i have a friend with a top degree from oxford, she never even got invited to interview by minimum wage jobs, suspected they dont want high degree holders, who they feel will leave as soon as something better comes along

 

[Greenback]

It's a complex situation which does not lend itself to easy analysis or simple answers.

One of the problems we face is a loss of a lot of menial factory type work that used to be available to young people leaving school and college. A lot of this production ha snow gone overseas. The work may have been routine and tedious, but it did provide a lot of opportunities that have now largely disappeared.

Another problem for young people is that there are a lot of older people in the job market who have far more experience. This means employers have mor echoice for the vacancies that they have, and in many cases will prefer someone who was a 15 or 20 year work record against someone who is fresh out of education, even if the latter person has worked while they have been studying.

 

[Lampshade]

i have a friend with a top degree from oxford, she never even got invited to interview by minimum wage jobs, suspected they dont want high degree holders, who they feel will leave as soon as something better comes along

This, basically.

Underqualified for skilled jobs, extremely competitive graduate jobs (the average is around 80:1) and overqualified for minimum wage jobs.

 

[Nym]

I have the joy of being able to not include my uni course and just put my work history though.

 

[route:oxford]

There are jobs out there, and there is still money out there too - otherwise people wouldn't be paying £2 for a small disposable cup of tea and even more for frothy milk with a hint of coffee.

I finished up with my last company on the 26th October, I've received a formal offer for a new role today 23rd November - with a far better compensation package.

Be sensible and think of yourself as an employer. HR departments are experts at spotting generic CVs and applications.

A CV should be tailored for the industry in which you are applying, and don't just copy and paste why you'd like to work for a company between apps...

Also... When you see a job you really like. Copy your entire CV to a brand new document then save it - that way it shows as a brand new document - not something that's been rehashed a few times then last edited 6 months ago.

Be careful with your system user name too, what's entertaining at home might not raise giggles in HR. Eg - Document created by "pussymagnet" or emailed by phatcoque at pussymagnet dot com...
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This, basically.

Underqualified for skilled jobs, extremely competitive graduate jobs (the average is around 80:1) and overqualified for minimum wage jobs.

You don't have to put you have a first from Oxford for the self-service till host role at Sainsbury...

The local manager has probably got a 2nd.

 

[Dave A]

I recently left a role at a TOC because I presumed I was going on to bigger & better things. Shouldn't of done that, as it all fell through. But instead of sitting at home moping away on benefits, I started applying for everything I could. I'm very luck at having over 5 years experience in Customer Service roles, but that didn't really mean anything to most company's I applied for.

But I kept at it, applying for everything I could, some even out of my range, but I remembered it never hurts to try! A month after leaving a job, my local Argos start advertising for Xmas Temps. I gave it a try, flew through their assessment day & manager interview, and was given the position of someone who was leaving, rather than a December start. Ok, not the greatest job in the world, and I really didn't miss retail from all those years back, but a job is a job so I took it!

Fast forward a month and a bit later, I've been applying for jobs all over still, and finally along came Southern with a contract to start on Dec 5th, and a role I want to do! Handed my notice in at Argos a week ago and finished yesterday. A nice couple of weeks off before I start working my arse off again!

The "moral" of this story is that I never gave up. Ok, I may have the experience over many applicants, but at the interviews I attended during my period of unemployment, some people just didn't have a clue. They'd turn up in jeans/trainers, un-prepared & late, or not at all! People had no idea about the basics! And I can't accept that they "didn't know", as it's common sense to turn up looking your best!

A lot of people (especially the school leavers) don't want to try hard enough. They'd prefer to get their benefits, sit around playing games all day & in the pub all evening, instead of doing a minimum wage job that will, in the long run, gain them some much needed experience.

But this isn't just their fault. Schools offer very little careers advice now days, and the job centre is the most useless waste of resources we have in this country! Instead of giving people money to sit around doing nothing, people should have incentives for getting up & going to interviews. Instead of job centre staff helping people to apply for jobs, they should be teaching them the skills to do it themselves!

Unemployment is not high because there aren't jobs available, it's because there is a problem (described above) that no-one wants to take responsibility for...

 

[Royston Vasey]

i have a friend with a top degree from oxford, she never even got invited to interview by minimum wage jobs, suspected they dont want high degree holders, who they feel will leave as soon as something better comes along

This is true, and to an extent I don't really blame the employers. As said quality jobs for graduates are dependent on the supply and demand of jobs and graduates. Companies aren't growing but the number of graduates are.

There is probably about 5% at the bottom who for whatever reason don't want to and won't and may never work (legitimately anyway). We should stop worrying about that, it's just a fact of life.

With the way that manufacturing has struggled in the UK, skilled jobs being lost, while our universities pump out more and more graduates (often poor quality degrees in fields with few jobs) it's no wonder unemployment is rising. The only answer is growth.

From a personal point of view, I have been fortunate never to be out of a job, but have worked for it and I make no apologies for that. I chose a practical but transferable degree at a quality university, have been flexible in terms of location and career path and worked damn hard. The opportunities are there, but you need to work a bit harder to prove yourself, whether that's in terms of being more dedicated than your peers, extra qualifications, mobility in terms of location or flexibility of career path.
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Edit: Dave A, you're spot on

 

[district]

I'm 16 and I've been looking for work for a while now. I've been applying for every job I see, trying to put my CV on job websites as well.

A lot of my peers are 'blacklisting' companies that they refuse to work for, but that doesn't make sense to me. Why turn down the offer of good experience?

I'm in the application process for an international market research company now conducting telephone interviews, so with any luck i'll have some more experience for my CV soon!

 

[Minilad]

Doesn't this thread highlight the fact that having a degree is not the be all and end all and more often than not you can't be good old fashioned experience and suitability for the job.
I just don't get this headlong rush to push kids into University when for a lot of them its the wrong road to take. Still I guess it looks good on the school league tables

 

[Nym]

XCDriver, it's built in to the education system in this country and I hate the fact that it is!

Children that go through school are indocronated to beleive that the're a failiure if they do not complete A Levels, and then at college the same for a degree, etc.

Add into this the amount of students completing utterly pointless degrees, it de-values the kind of work that I am currently doing, I end up with more professional accreditations, registrations and letters after my name than most when I complete my course, because it's designed to train an engineer!

Also the amount of people who go to university for 'the experience' really anoys me, I'm not here for the experience and I resent those who are and take up the resources of the university by messing around, and give 'students' a bad press and reputation for being workshy. This then goes into the workplace, a lot of Engineering firms I would like to work for (and have the appropriate practical experience for, thanks to formally working with the REME) won't take me on because I am a graduate seeking employment.

And at Royston Vasey, that is exactly what I am doing, I am accredited by the IET, IEEE, IMechE, IRSE and countless others and the course recognised by the UKEC. In addition to that thanks to the amount of Mathematics on the course, I can go into pretty much any analytical job. (Including accounting and finance roles!)

 

[Dave A]

I'm 16 and I've been looking for work for a while now. I've been applying for every job I see, trying to put my CV on job websites as well.

A lot of my peers are 'blacklisting' companies that they refuse to work for, but that doesn't make sense to me. Why turn down the offer of good experience?

I'm in the application process for an international market research company now conducting telephone interviews, so with any luck i'll have some more experience for my CV soon!

Good work mate! And good luck with that interview.

In the meantime, never forget there's voluntary work. I started off in a charity shop to gain experience. Ticks the retail box with a big green marker that does!
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XCDriver, it's built in to the education system in this country and I hate the fact that it is!

Children that go through school are indocronated to beleive that the're a failiure if they do not complete A Levels, and then at college the same for a degree, etc.

Agreed with you there. But the government wants kids to do that as it keeps them off their unemployment lists for another 5-7 years... :-x

Add into this the amount of students completing utterly pointless degrees

*Cough* Media Studies *Cough*

 

[Darandio]

A lot of my peers are 'blacklisting' companies that they refuse to work for, but that doesn't make sense to me. Why turn down the offer of good experience?

I have extensive experience in recruitment and that is a really big issue, there is a large mindset out there of people who have not currently got a job that feel they are "above" many vacant positions. I have always been a firm believer in taking what you can when you are at your lowest, a prospective employer will look far more favourably at someone that is currently in work and looking to advance than someone who has a large gap in their CV.

It also says a lot about the person as well, to have someone who has maybe just left university with a qualification that in theory, should safeguard a high level position but in the current climate has not been able to do so. To then see that person is currently doing a temporary Christmas position behind the counter at Boots can be strangely attractive to an future employer.

The very same situation has happened to me over the years. Whilst out of work, I would always apply equally for vacancies, both at the lower and higher end of the scale. The trend would generally be that whilst unemployed, despite being qualified or capable of the higher positions, employers would not be interested. I then took a job as a button marker in a clothing factory, possibly the most repetetive and annoying job in the world, armed only with a white pencil and card template but now when I applied for those higher jobs whilst in work, interviews started being offered. I then observed this trend continuing when I got into recruitment.